Horror Films in Hotlanta, is a horror film festival in Atlanta, Georgia. This annual event showcases horror films from around the world. Atlanta has a great film scene in general, but also a dedicated horror film community that is eager to see new films. All flavors of horror are accepted including creatures, suspense, vampires, zombies, psycho killers, dark comedy, animation and other horrific situations that will make our audience jump. We've recruited 12 judges in the Atlanta area that are ready to watch every minute of every film submitted. We are also looking for horror film screenplays and hope to recognize exceptional work that can one day be produced into a short or feature film.

Awards & Prizes

12 different judges will decide 20 different awards that will be presented for outstanding filmmaking, creativity and screenwriting.

1) Best Actor
2) Best Actress
3) Best Cinematography
4) Best Director
5) Best Ensemble Cast
6) Best Feature Length Horror Screenplay
7) Best Film Editing
8) Best Georgia Horror Film
9) Best International Horror Film
10) Best Micro Short Film
11) Best Original Music
12) Best Short Horror Film
13) Best Short Horror Screenplay
14) Best Special Effects
15) Best Supporting Actor
16) Best Supporting Actress
17) Best Visual Effects
18) Most Original Film Concept
19) Most Original Screenplay Concept
20) Single Scariest Moment

Rules & Terms

All films and screenplays are eligible, regardless if they have distribution or not. Films that are accepted to this festival are expected to provide a download link to their film within 1 week of notification. All films must have an resolution of 1920x1080 HD or better. Standard Definition and 720p will not be accepted. All films will be compiled and screened on Blu-Ray DVD. 23.976, 24, 25 & 30 frame rates are all acceptable, but 23.976 is preferred. DCP and 5.1 Surround Sound are not accepted, only stereo files please. Quicktime (.mov) and (.mp4) file formats are preferred.

Each film and screenplay accepted will have 2 free tickets available for all screenings. All other guests must pay $14.00 each for their tickets. No exceptions.

AJ Gordon

October 3, 2018
Opening Date

November 30, 2018
First Deadline

January 31, 2019
Discount Deadline

March 31, 2019
Earlybird Deadline

April 30, 2019
Regular Deadline

June 30, 2019
Late Deadline

August 31, 2019
Final Deadline

September 30, 2019
Notification Date

October 25 – 26, 2019
Event Date

Categories & Fees

Horror Film (6-30 minutes)

This category is reserved for creative and scary Horror Films that have adrenaline pumping moments. Do you have a film that was intentionally created to scare people? Does your film depict any horrifying action sequences, blood, gore, monsters, psychotic people, slashing, stalking, zombies, vampires, disease outbreaks, demonic possession, haunted buildings, or any other elements that would classify your film as a true horror film? Great sound design, musical score, cinematography, visual effects or special effects are appreciated by the judges. The duration of videos submitted to the Horror Film category is between six minutes and thirty minutes in length including all credits. (6:00 - 30:00)

This category is reserved for creative and scary Horror Films that have adrenaline pumping moments. Do you have a film that was intentionally created to scare people? Does your film depict any horrifying action sequences, blood, gore, monsters, psychotic people, slashing, stalking, zombies, vampires, disease outbreaks, demonic possession, haunted buildings, or any other elements that would classify your film as a true horror film? Great sound design, musical score, cinematography, visual effects or special effects are appreciated by the judges. The time limit for the Horror Micro Short Film category is five minutes and fifty nine seconds (05:59) including all credits.

This category is specifically designed for Horror Film Trailers. You may be marketing a film that has already been produced, distributed, or perhaps you've made a trailer for a film that you're raising money for. The bottom line is, whether your film exists or not, the trailer can be submitted here and shown throughout our festival program if it's good. Music, sound effects, cinematography and fast paced editing are what the judges are looking for. All submissions to the Horror Film Trailer category must be 3 minutes or less.

This category is reserved for experimental horror films that may not tell a story in a traditional way or in a non-linear fashion. Images, dream sequences, terrifying moments, graphics or sound effects that may appear to be random, chaotic, confusing, mysterious, futuristic, retro, strange, weird, or difficult to classify qualify are what the judges are looking for. Experimental horror films must have some element that has something truly unique about it. The time limit for the Experimental Horror Micro Short Film category is five minutes and fifty nine seconds (05:59) including all credits.

This category is reserved for experimental horror films that may not tell a story in a traditional way or in a non-linear fashion. Images, dream sequences, terrifying moments, graphics or sound effects that may appear to be random, chaotic, confusing, mysterious, futuristic, retro, strange, weird, or difficult to classify qualify are what the judges are looking for. Experimental horror films must have some element that has something truly unique about it. The duration of videos submitted to the Experimental Horror Film category is between six minutes and thirty minutes in length including all credits. (6:00 - 30:00)

This category is reserved for comedy films in the horror film genre, that are full of jokes? Is it a Slasher parody, is it a reality show about vegetarian Vampires or Redneck Zombies? Is your film full of 80's era bad one-liners, full of nudity for no reason? You know if your film is a Horror Comedy Film, the question is, are you going to send it to us? The time limit for the Horror Comedy Micro Short Film category is five minutes and fifty nine seconds (05:59) including all credits.

This category is reserved for comedy films in the horror film genre, that are full of jokes? Is it a Slasher parody, is it a reality show about vegetarian Vampires or Redneck Zombies? Is your film full of 80's era bad one-liners, full of nudity for no reason? You know if your film is a Horror Comedy Film, the question is, are you going to send it to us? The duration of videos submitted to the Horror Comedy Film category is between six minutes and thirty minutes in length including all credits. (6:00 - 30:00)

This category is reserved for creative and scary Horror Screenplays that have adrenaline pumping moments. Do you have a story that was intentionally created to scare people? Does your screenplay depict any horrifying action sequences, blood, gore, monsters, psychotic people, slashing, stalking, zombies, vampires, disease outbreaks, demonic possession, haunted buildings, or any other elements that would classify your screenplay as a true horror film experience? The maximum number of pages allowed for the Screenplay: Horror Short Story category is 40 pages in .pdf format.

This category is reserved for creative and scary Horror Screenplays that have adrenaline pumping moments. Do you have a story that was intentionally created to scare people? Does your screenplay depict any horrifying action sequences, blood, gore, monsters, psychotic people, slashing, stalking, zombies, vampires, disease outbreaks, demonic possession, haunted buildings, or any other elements that would classify your screenplay as a true horror film experience? The page range allowed for the Screenplay: Horror Feature Length Story category is between 40-150 pages in .pdf format.

This category is reserved for comedy screenplays in the horror film genre, that are full of jokes? Is it a Slasher parody, is it a reality show about vegetarian Vampires or Redneck Zombies? Is your film full of 80's era bad one-liners, evil blood oranges or face eating waffles? You know if your screenplay is a Horror Comedy screenplay, the question is, are you going to send it to us? The maximum number of pages allowed for the Screenplay: Horror Comedy Short Story category is 40 pages in .pdf format.

This category is reserved for comedy screenplays in the horror film genre, that are full of jokes? Is it a Slasher parody, is it a reality show about vegetarian Vampires or Redneck Zombies? Is your film full of 80's era bad one-liners, evil blood oranges or face eating waffles? You know if your screenplay is a Horror Comedy screenplay, the question is, are you going to send it to us? The page range allowed for the Screenplay: Horror Comedy Feature Length Story category is between 40-150 pages in .pdf format.